Hydraulic trip tool jar



Feb. 2, 1943. D;- U. HAPPE "ET AL 2309,872

'HYDRAULIC TRIP TOOLl JAR Filed Nv.- 2o, 1940 .J Vif im, www x n z m Lfla I f i .24.7 W uw@ uw zy. y, y 4 .3 Wiz Patented Feb. 2, 1943HYDRAULIC TRIP TOAOL JAR Donald U. Shaffer, Brea, and Edward C. Hamm,

Norwalk, Calif., assignors' to Shaer Tool Works, Brea, Calif., acorporation of California Application November 20, 1940,Se1'ial No.366,336

(Cl. Z55- 27) Claims.

This invention relates to the deep well industry and is a jar tool foruse with various specific implements employed in the industry.

Tools of this class are proposed for the purpose of imparting up-shocksor jolts to such objects as may be caught onto a shing tool of one kindor another in a well or well hole and which objects are to be extracted,if possible.

It is desired that the degree of up-jolt may be varied during thelishing process according to the fastness with which the object or flsh"may be held by the earth formation or otherl causitive factor; it beingan advantage to gradumore particularly claimed presently.

Figure 1 and Figure 2 are axial, partly elevational sections of relatedupper and lower fragments making up a whole jar mechanism of the instantinvention; in the (fish attached) normal Y position for stringtensioning.

ally work the tension in the tool string up to that vvaried but theyinvolved objectionable operation of the apparatus, that is its rotation,and which operation, by a purpose of the instant; invention, iseliminated. That rotation was for the'mere purpose of varying the effectof a control spring device. Such a type of machine requires costlymachine parts and labor and involves risk of tool loss, as by twist-offsor unscrewing at joints, and an object of this invention is to eliminatesuch parts and to greatly simplify the means for controlling thetripping function of the jar mechanism or tool.

A purpose of this invention is to provide means operated by a straightpull of the string to set the control for automatic release action.

Another object lis to provide a hydro-mechanical control means for ahammer tripping mechanism, and provide for indefinite number of repeatoperations at any desired string tension: all without other than astraight lift or lowering due to function of the mechanism and of thestring.

provide a tool of this class which is of simple construction and easyand effective operation, and is substantial and reliable, andparticularly Whose several control parts are quite easily repaired orbodily substituted by parts which may be machined in iield or supplyshops with ordinary equipment.

The invention consists of certain advance- Figure 3 is an aXial sectionof a fragment of the mechanism showing parts when the string is undertension and in ready position for an automatic trip of its locking meansor latch dogs.

This invention involves a string section consisting cfa series ofcoordinated, cooperative devices making up a lacking means and a lockcontrol device which latter is characterized as a hydro-mechanicalgovernor; all of these features y being organized into a unitary controltool whose head is connected to an appropriate tool string operated by aderrick works, and whose lower end is attachable to any appropriatefishing 0r other implement; neither the fishing tool nor the stringbeing here shown.

The instant invention will be considered as made up of certainassemblies as follows:

The wash pipe assembly A pin 2, for attaching a fishing implement, is

V screwed at3 onto a nipple 4 which is screwed not upwardly underpressure. An additional object of the invention is to and advantages ashereinafter developed, and

whose constructions, combinations, and details of'means, and the mannerofoperation will be The jar hammer Slidably mounted on the wash pipe 9is a tubular `hammer l5 having a ring head I6 and therebelow a reducedwaist providing an upwardly facing, annular shoulder I1 on which rests a`device or means functioning to yieldably lock the hammer l5 in anormally retracted position (away from an anvil) downward on the pipe 9.The hammer l5 is rigid with a tubular, upper mandrel I8 which screws atIS into a top pin box 20 by which this control unit, in toto, attachestothe desired, upper string to the derrick floor. Thus a pull on thestring pulls on the hammer I5 and if this hammer is suddenly released itwill snap sharply upwardly along the wash pipe; this being anchored tothe engaged fish in the hole. Means are here provided to impart blows bythe hammer I5 to the caught iish to loosen it in the hole.

The -imvil assembly Fitted about, and splined at 23 on the hammer headI6 there is a shell 24 having a bushing 25 packed at 26 onto the mandrelI8 and the lower end of the bushing presents an anvil face A to theupper shoulder H of the hammer head I6. The shell 24 is reduced andscrews at 24a into the upper end of a barrel 21 and presents an annular,bottom end face 24h to the locking means above referred to. The barrel21 is of considerable length and at its lower end has an internalshoulder 28 above which there is slidably mounted in the barrel chambera sleeve piston 30 so fitted in the barrel as to expressly provide forav leakage of fluid between its periphery and the bore face of thebarrel.

The sleeve piston 3i! slidably ts on the piston head 1 and in normal,lower position is held slightly spaced, as by spurs 28a, from theshoulder 28 to insure that fluid L sealed in the barrel under the head,will be readily effective on the lower end face of the sleeve piston 30;which will hereinafter be called the floating piston, though it does notfloat: it has a free sliding action both as to the piston head 1 and asto the barrel 21 and as to a collar 40, and is an entirely unattached,fluid motivated prime motor. Packing 3| is provided about the pistonhead to prevent escape of motivating liquid L when it is subjected topressure by 11p-stroke of the bottom 28 of the pocket below the head 1;the pocket above the head 1 being an unfilled reservoir.

The barrel 21 has a nipple 21a screwing into a thimble 33 and is packedat 34 about the headed stem 6 which forms a lower mandrel. The thimble33 has an internal, annular shoulder 33a, which is splined at 35 ontothe nipple 4 of the stem 6 and this nipple 4 has a top shoulder 4a innormal, spaced opposition to the thimble shoulder 33a. It will be seenthat if the thimble 33 moves upwardly as to the nipple 4 a pull isplaced on the nipple and parts attached thereto and hanging therefrom.In other words, tension is applied to the caught fish. At the same time,if the barrel 21 is pulled upwardly, by means now to be described, thehammer head I6 will still be locked in down spaced position, as to itsanvil A of the shell bushing 25, by a locking device and its controlmeans.

The hammer lock The locking means in the present illustrative embodimentincludes a ring of separate, stiff, nearly vertical, truss bars or dogs31 (I3 in Hamm Patent No. 2,199,969, and over which this invention is adirect improvement in the same manner that Hamm advanced the jar of KnoxPatent No. 1,801,673). The ring of dogs 31 is shaped to fit about thewaist ofthe hammer I5 `and partly stand on the shoulder I1 thereof andwhich shoulder slants downwardly and outwardly to be of cam function onthe standing dogs while their upper ends are thrusting up against theend face 24h of the shell 24; the said face forming a fulcrum foroscillation of the dogs.

The dogs 31 are normally, yieldably, thrust radially at their lower endsonto the cam face I'I by a contractor or controller collar 40 fittingslidably between the barrel 21 and the hammer head I6; the collar havingan inverged face 40a engaging the near ends of the dogs. 'Ihe collar 40is seated on an appropriate (here helical) spring 4I housed in thebarrel 21 and whose lower end stands on the floating sleeve piston 30;the spring 4I being normally somewhat compressed between the piston 30and the collar 40 to insure that the dogs 31 are normally functioning tolock the hammer head I6 in down spaced position from the anvil A of thehousing assembly 2'4, 25, 21 and 33.

It is understood that the incompressible liquid L fills the spacebetween the packing on the 'piston head 1 and the packing 34 on its stem6 and this liquid can at times iiow down from the reservoir through therelief valve I0.

The operation The fishing tool fixed on the assembly pin 2, having beencaught onto a fish in a hole, the tool string is tensioned from thedraw-works to lpull on the top mandrel box 20 and thereby pull on thehammer element I5, which, being locked by the dogs 31 to the housingassembly, acts to pull this assembly upwardly along the stationary, washpipe assembly holding onto the sh. The housing can move up until thethimble shoulder 33a engages the nipple shoulder 4a and is therebystopped. The purpose of this upward movement of the housing assembly onthe stem 6 and o n the wash pipe 9; the housing being pulled up by thehammer element I5, is to effect a material increase of compression ofthe spring 4I against the collar 40 and this pressure is exerted harderon the toe ends of the dogs 31 until the spring pressure forces theoating piston down, (after the string pull ofthe hammer assemblyincluding the locked barrel 21 has been stopped but holds greatlyincreased tension) as fast as an intentional leakage of fluid L aroundthe piston sleeve 3 3 allows, and thereaction of the cam shoulder I1 0fthehammer thrusts thedogs 31 outwardly and represses the cam collar 3pVand thereby releases the tensioned hammer element I5 from the barrel 21and the hammer then snaps up -and'strikes the anvil A of the barrelbushing 25. VSince the thimble shoulder 33a is at this time pull-ing upon the nipple shoulder 4a it will be seen Athat a jar shock is Struck onthe tool coupling 2 on nipple 4. Thust-he piston sleeve 30 by itsdifferential upward stroke, under fluid pressure above thepocket bottom2B, has two functions, one vto compress the spring 4I independently ofany motion of the collar 40, and two, to hold it compressed to maintainthe collar 4i!V against the dogs 31 until enough liquid has leaked pastthe elevated piston to allow the camIT to toe out the dogs and depressthe collar 40. When this occurs the dogs take a vertical position between the barrel and the lower body part of the hammer I5 which has, nowbeen snapped upwardly lso that the `shoulder H impacts the anvil A ofthe barrel 21; the shoulder 33a all this time being in engagement withthe-joint shoulder 4a and therefore the blowof Athe hammer istransmitted to the iish tool onpi-n' 2.

The string can be repeatedly lowered, rafter each jar function, tore-set the dogs and in this action the check valve I0 opens downwardlyfor free flow of the liquid -L to break vacuum under the stem pistonhead 1.

There is a differential, upward movement of the floating piston 30 dueto liquid pressure, greater lthan the spring reaction, on its lower endat each upward pull of the tool string. When the tension on the stringis able to act through the hammer shoulder l1 to push the dogs 31 backout of the Way of the shoulder I1 the dogs take a vertical position onthe control collar 40 fand the whole hammer element slides upward on thewash pipe 9 and in the stationary housing assembly (held by the nippleshoulder 4a) and the hammer bangs onto the anvil A and a jarringvibration is sent to the pin 2 and the subjacent shing tool and its sh.

By watching the weight indicator the operator can regulate the jolt blowat will--the intensity of the blow is entirely independent of the degreeof compression of the spring 4| whose function is, first to push up onthe control collar, and second, to force the hydraulically controlledpiston sleeve 30 down as fast as leakage of liquid past this piston willallow. When the pull on the shoulder I1 equalizes the thrust of thecollar 40 on the dogs 31 the latter are about ready to trip oi thehammer, and then at a little less pressure by the collar, due to liquidleak past the piston 30, the hammer is let go to hit the anvil.

What is claimed is:

1. In a mechanism for jarring well tools; a hammer element, a parthaving an anvil to be struck by the hammer, means connective to a toolstring to put the hammer under tension, trippable, yieldable means tolock the ham-mer and said part (to be struck) as one, a hydraulicchamber, a floating device in said chamber and means yieldinglyrepressing said devicel and a means for generating iluid pressure insaid chamber to move said device against said yieldable means.

2. In mechanism for jarring Well tools; a tensionable hammer means, ananvil means to be struck by the tensioned hammer, yieldable means forlocking the said hammer and anvil in spaced, co-pullable relation, oneof said hammer or anvil means being attachable to a tool string, ahydraulic chamber and a spring therein for said locking means, a pistonworking in said chamber and a seat for the said spring operative bychange of fluid pressure by action of the piston to cornlpress thespring.

3. A tool jar including a housing assembly including a hammer receivinganvil, a wash pipe assembly connective to a fishing tool and along whichthe said housing is slidable, a hammer slidably mounted on the wash pipeassembly and as to the housing, trippable locking means to connect thehammer to said housing for a pull as one, a spring for normally settingthe locking means in eiective position, a fluid chamber, a pistonconnected to the anvil and working in said chamber, and a seat workingfree in the chamber and supporting the spring and being operative byiluid pressure under compression stroke of the piston.

4. The jar of claim 3, and said seat having a loose fit in the chamberto provide a slow leak and having a snug fit on the piston.

5. A tool jar including a housing assembly having an anvil, a wash pipeassembly connective to a fishing tool and along which pipe the housingis slidable, a hammer attachable to a pulling string, trippable means tointerconnect the hammer to the housing for pull on the latter, laninitial stop to limit motion of the housing on the wash pipe under suchpull, a hydraulic chamber, a spring reacting on the locking means,freely movable spring supporting means in the chamber and a piston forgenerating changes in pressure of fluid in the chamber to accomplish aspring compressing action of said supporting means.

6. The jar of claim 5; said interconnecting means including a cam collarengaging the spring and a set of dogs repressible by the tensionedhammer to overcome the collar and repress it on the spring to disconnectthe hammer from the housing for striking function.

'7. In a jar having a set of latching dogs and a cam collar for settingthe dogs in holding position on a jar element, a spring `acting on thecollar, a hydraulic chamber, a member in the said chamber forcompressing the spring, and a piston in the chamber for generatingpressure in a iluid in the chamber whereby to motivate said member inspring compressing function.

8. The jar of claim '1, said member being repressive by the spring as tothe said piston whilst the collar is in a normal dog setting position.

9. In -a jar of the class described, a hammer assembly and a jar anvilto be struck by the hammer, a hydraulic chamber, a piston in the chamberand connected to the anvil, a floating sleeve iitting the piston toshift thereon, a spring setting on the sleeve, and assembly and jaranvil interlocking means controlled by the spring; said piston operativeto generate fluid pressure in the chamber to shift the sleeve in springcompressing direction and the spring reacting subsequently to repressthe sleeve and to permit the locking means to trip.

10. A well tool jar having, in combination, a jar control and assemblylock including a latch dog cam collar, a. hydraulic chamber in which thecollar is slidable, a spring urging the collar in latch closingposition, and a trip timing means including a oating seat for thespring, and a piston Working in said chamber and operative to generatefluid pressure against said sleeve whereby to move the sleeve in springcompressing function; the sleeve having a leaky iit in the chamber so asto be repressed by the spring to time the moment of latch trip.

DONALD U. SHAFFER. EDWARD C. HAMM.

